Return to the Fortress

After returning to the hall, Abel gave Knight Marshall a detailed account of what had happened and took out the parchment map.

Knight Marshall took the map and studied it carefully for a while. He could recognize some of the orcish writing, and from it, he could roughly guess what the map said.

"That's incredibly important, Abel. With this map, we can intercept the orcs entering the human world." Holding the map, Knight Marshall paced back and forth across the room, carefully considering how to maximize its value.

"The orcs that appeared this time probably won't be low-level. Although we don't know how many there are, all the Wolf Riders I encountered were at least Level 6. Our castle doesn't have enough manpower to intercept them." Abel spoke with some concern.

"Of course it won't be our castle doing the intercepting. I'll hand the map to the lord of the city. If this interception succeeds and enough orcs are killed, it will be more than enough for you to earn a noble title." Knight Marshall sounded somewhat excited. Then, remembering Abel's recent adventure, he added, "No matter what, you can't go out alone again for a while. If you must leave, you have to bring a squad of guards."

"Don't mention that dire wolf to anyone for now. I'll tell everyone in the castle who knows about it to keep it secret." Knight Marshall sighed. "A mount of this level has already acknowledged its master, but I'm afraid some people may be unwilling to accept that and try to take it back."

"I'll listen to you." Abel knew that Knight Marshall had more say than he did when it came to the character of the nobles. Besides, Black Wind was still young, and there were several years before he reached adulthood. In a few years, Abel would be strong enough that no one would be able to forcibly take his things. In truth, this was also because Knight Marshall and Abel knew too little about the Blacksmith Guild. If Master Bentham had been there, he would have told them what price someone in this human world—or even across this continent—would pay for forcibly taking something from a master blacksmith.

"Do you still have that Large Beast Trap?" Knight Marshall was very curious about the trap that could injure Wolf Riders. He knew how terrifying Wolf Riders were.

"No. All ten of them were left in the forest behind the castle. But I marked their locations, so I'll retrieve them tomorrow." Abel answered him, never expecting Knight Marshall to take an interest in the Large Beast Trap.

"Can the other blacksmiths reproduce it?" Knight Marshall asked with concern.

"It would be very difficult to reproduce. I forged one of the components using a special method." Abel now understood the forging standards of this world very well. The steel used for the springs was special steel. It had to undergo extensive carburization to reduce the steel's strength while preserving its elasticity. Apart from dwarven masters, there was probably no one in the human world capable of making it.

"Can it be mass-produced? I think that if the castle were equipped with these Large Beast Traps, its defensive capabilities would be strengthened."

"Yes. As long as I make the key components, the blacksmiths at the Blacksmith Shop have already made all the other parts before." Abel explained.

"When you have time, forge some key components and equip the castle with Large Beast Traps as soon as possible." Knight Marshall urged him somewhat impatiently. Then he added, "Tomorrow, tell the scouts where the marks are. You don't need to go yourself. The Blacksmith Shop has also been moved into the castle these past few days, so stay inside the castle tomorrow and don't go out."

That evening, after returning to his room, Steward Linsey brought over some heated goat's milk. To make it easier to feed Black Wind, Abel found a piece of gerbil hide.

Gerbils were similar to the rats of Earth. Their hides were extremely fine and soft, and people often made small items from them. Abel called a maid over and told her what he had in mind. Before long, the maid brought him the finished product: an unattractive but highly practical milk bottle with a built-in nipple.

When the nipple was placed against Black Wind's mouth, the ravenously hungry Black Wind clamped down on it with his still-forming little teeth and sucked greedily at the goat's milk. His tiny face was filled with contentment.

On Earth, Abel had never kept a pet, so he had never known what it felt like to raise one. But now he finally understood why some people treated their pets like their own children. That was exactly how Abel felt now.

That very night, Knight Marshall sent someone to the Lord's Mansion to deliver the parchment map to Viscount Dickens. To gain Viscount Dickens's trust, the messenger also handed over the werewolf's corpse. Knight Marshall should have gone personally, but under the current circumstances, he had to remain in the castle.

The next day, after Abel got up, he found the temporary Blacksmith Shop at the site of the old warehouse behind the castle.

Abel found Master Bentham and asked him to help make the Hundred Refinements Blank. He then gathered all the blacksmiths and had the more experienced ones direct the production of the other components. The entire Blacksmith Shop soon became busy.

Abel had become highly proficient at making the thick compression springs used in the Large Beast Trap. He made fifteen a day for three consecutive days. The other blacksmiths progressed quickly as well, and after three days, all the components were ready. Under Abel's guidance, they began assembling the Large Beast Traps.

The completed Large Beast Traps were made entirely of black steel, and the serrated teeth on the jaws gleamed coldly. To improve their effectiveness, Master Bentham personally sharpened every tooth. Once these teeth clamped onto a prey's body, they would inflict tremendous damage.

The ten Large Beast Traps Abel had set up in the forest were also all found and brought back by experienced scouts following Abel's marks.

After the Large Beast Traps were completed, Knight Marshall tested the newly improved version. He pressed a section of tree trunk down on the trigger, and the sharpened teeth sank deeply into it. If that had been a dire wolf's leg, the result would have been the dire wolf losing its ability to move. Knight Marshall was extremely satisfied with the Large Beast Trap.

In fact, unless multiple orc squads acted together, an orc squad would not attack the castle. Its tall defensive walls made it difficult for their cavalry to fight, and a forced assault would only result in heavy casualties. Even Level 6 and Level 7 Wolf Riders had no way to cross the tall walls, while the orcs' technical skill was insufficient to produce sophisticated siege equipment. The castle itself had been designed to defend against this kind of small-scale battle.

Orc squads generally targeted villages without tall walls for protection. Such places were easier to conquer and would not cause casualties among the squads.

The placement of the Large Beast Traps merely reinforced some of the castle's defensive blind spots. All the territory's residents had gathered inside the castle. With the mindset of leaving nothing to chance, Knight Marshall placed the Large Beast Traps in the forest behind the castle. Thirty meters outside the castle's defensive wall stood tall trees that blocked the view. Moreover, if the orcs wanted to attack the castle, the trees would be essential materials for their siege equipment. Placing Large Beast Traps there would prevent the orcs from easily making siege equipment and would also alert the guards inside the castle to the presence of an enemy.

At last, after finishing all these tasks, Abel finally had a chance to calm down and consider the previous battle.

All along, Abel had believed that his strength was sufficient to protect himself. But his battle with the werewolf had made him understand the gap between himself and a formal Professionals. A Level 5 Apprentice Knight was only one level below a formal Professionals, but because of battle qi and the terrifying enhancement it provided, formal Professionals could practically crush apprentice Professionals.

When Abel faced the injured werewolf, he had been almost completely incapable of resisting. Even with its leg injured, the werewolf was faster than him. If he had not been luckier, the outcome of that battle would have been difficult to predict.

A junior formal Professionals could circulate battle qi throughout the body to enhance their strength. An intermediate Professionals could load battle qi onto a weapon, just as Knight Marshall had done in the battle outside Harvest City. That gleaming greatsword had been the result of loading battle qi onto it. After battle qi was loaded onto a weapon, the weapon became sharper and its power was enhanced as well, with a greater increase than at the junior level, reaching 100%.

Starting with High Professionals, battle qi loaded onto a weapon could leave the weapon and be used for medium-range attacks. At that point, a Professionals could practically suppress an army of hundreds on the battlefield.